History
Is Zoetermeer a young municipality? That is true and not true. True, when it comes to the current size of the city. Not true, when it comes to its place in the history books and the existence of a municipality called Zoetermeer.
Zoetermeer is a city that is explicitly concerned with the present and the future. A culture that stems from the gigantic construction tasks that the city has faced in recent decades. And that is still happening, as can be seen in the youngest district Oosterheem.
An eye for the past
That does not mean that Zoetermeer has no eye for the past. Before 1100 there was already a fishing village of Zoetermeer. In the 1960s until now, the butter village grew from then to the current city. That history is too fascinating to forget.
History in the City Archives
You will find the history of Zoetermeer in the archives and collections of the City Archives . This forms, as it were, the memory of the city.
Zoetermeer, history in a nutshell
Zoetermeer is one of the Netherlands' growth centres. The city's history has many highlights. They give an impression of Zoetermeer's recent history.
More about the history of Zoetermeer
Zoetermeer then and now on the map
Compare Zoetermeer in 1850 with today.
The oldest document
The oldest archive document in Zoetermeer dates from 1504. It is a book in which the village administrators account for their financial management.
More about the oldest document
Craftsmen and craft lordship
The manorial lordship dates back to the Middle Ages. A manorial lordship was an area in which the local lord, in addition to all kinds of privileges, could also exercise jurisdiction. Zoetermeer also had a manorial lord early on. Most rights have disappeared in the past centuries. What remained are the property rights, such as fishing, ownership of water and the use of a lord's pew in the church. The current manorial lord is the owner of some historical water in Zoetermeer, such as the Voorwegwetering and part of the Grote Dobbe and thus owns the fishing rights. The family crests of the 18th century lords of the manor are displayed above the pew in the Oude Kerk on the Dorpsstraat .
Zoetermeer surnames
Zoetermeer surnames in history.
Panorama from the Buytenpark
From the northernmost hill in the Buytenpark, a beautiful panorama unfolds over the surroundings of Zoetermeer. Here you look out over the Randstad, the polders and the Groene Hart. From this spot you can see how the various developments in nature and culture are interwoven. The landscape has changed considerably over the past 1000 years. This provides a wealth of historical stories. A panorama board has been developed to visualize these historical stories.
Ten themes are provided with pictograms and short stories. They provide more information about 1000 years of Zoetermeer. The Geuzenfietstocht (Zoetermeer 1000 foundation) and the Zoetermeer Panoramawandeling 'Browsing through Zoetermeer' (Flora adventure) are examples of this.
The panorama board was made possible by: the municipality of Zoetermeer, the Historical Society of Oud Soetermeer, Floravontuur Promotion Zoetermeer, the Zoetermeer 1000 Foundation, Arno van Berge Hainaut & Ruud Hisgen (Direct Dutch), Blomsma Print & Sign Zoetermeer, Daallin BV Civil Engineering.
Historical Society Old Soetermeer
For historical information about Zoetermeer you can also visit: